Mayor Jaume Collboni’s government’s warning to restrict access to the center of Barcelona by private vehicle in the event of a collapse during these important festivities triggers a deep unease among the city’s main axes.
The merchants, especially those in the center, regret that on Monday the deputy mayor for Security, the socialist Albert Batlle, during the presentation of the mobility and security device specific to these very special dates, advised the public not to use the private vehicle when approaching the center, that there is a possibility that you will meet an agent of the Urban Guard who will prevent you from passing, that if the car parks are filled more than expected, the municipal police will take measures in order to avoid the complicated situations that were experienced in the area just a couple of weeks ago.
Then, the coincidence of the demonstration against gender violence and one of the most important afternoons of Black Friday forced the closure of several streets in the center. Other demonstrations also caused several mobility problems a few weeks ago.
So, on Tuesday, the merchants of Barcelona Oberta, the organization that brings together the most visited commercial areas of the city, wrote a letter to Deputy Mayor Batlle to express their displeasure.
“The fact that this mobility device has been announced in case the center collapses – you can read in the letter in question – discourages people from coming to Barcelona, ??especially visitors from outside. In addition, Barcelona has an extensive network of car parks to accommodate shoppers from the metropolitan area who wish to arrive by car in order to load their purchases more comfortably. We understand the convenience of using public transport for residents, but we consider that this announcement generates unnecessary alarm and is counterproductive for the most anticipated commercial campaign of the year.” Because for many shops, bars and restaurants, the Christmas holidays account for 30% of the entire year’s turnover.
In addition, Gabriel Jené, president of Barcelona Oberta, maintains that these kinds of approaches only generate anxiety among citizens and that they do not correspond to reality in any way.
“The center of Barcelona has a completely sufficient network of car parks – continues the spokesperson for the main commercial areas -. In fact, it is not used as much lately as in the past. Fewer cars have been coming to the center of Barcelona for some time than before. The mobility problems that the center has mainly derive from the maintenance of certain tactical urban planning measures, such as the turns that occur on Gran Via and Avinguda Diagonal…, and also from other situations, such as it was experienced a couple of weekends ago. If the route of the march had been different, those mobility problems would not have occurred”.
